BLASOEN by Willem Jacques

Friday, January 8, 2010

Meet Mr. Gaga | The Stylist Nicola Formichetti

Whether or not you know him by name, you’ll recognize the stylist Nicola Formichetti by his aggressively modern looks (Lady Gaga’s metal orb, anyone?). When it comes to his personal style, Formichetti attributes his unrestricted creativity to his multicultural upbringing, which was shared between Italy and Japan. Now 32, he lives in New York, London and Tokyo, and keeps himself busy working as the creative director of the London magazine Dazed and Confused, the fashion director of Vogue Hommes Japan and as a stylist for advertising campaigns for Uniqlo, Dolce & Gabbana and Alexander McQueen, to name just a few. Before kicking off Lady Gaga’s “Monster Ball” tour in Montreal, T caught up with Formichetti to ask him about his career, inspirations and what it’s like to work with Gaga.
Q.

How did you start working in fashion, and what has your trajectory been?
A.

In my early 20s, Dazed and Confused magazine gave me a small monthly column called “Eye Spy,” where I edited and highlighted things that I liked, took pictures and styled. Ten years later, I’m the creative director. I’m always trying new things, and so I never stay in one place. I like to move forward, which is why my career is made up of so many different parts: I direct magazines, I consult for fashion brands, I work with other artists, etc. I try to do as much as possible to keep inspired and learn about new things.

What do you like best about your job?

I like that it feels more like a hobby than a job. It’s always fun. I like working with photographers that I love, like Hedi Slimane, Steven Klein and Nick Knight.

Many people in the business have a love-hate relationship with fashion. Is there something you’re not so crazy about?

There’s way too much celebrity in fashion. I don’t really like working with celebrities, so I try to stay away from that whole machine. But of course I have met some incredibly nice and creative people who just happen to be a “celebrity.”

Your work with Lady Gaga has brought you a tremendous amount of recognition. The “Bad Romance” video even gets played in New York City taxis. How did you two start working together, and what has it been like?

I first met her at a photo shoot for V magazine. It was an instant love. I had always stayed away from celebrity and musicians before, but she was so different. Instantly we understood each other completely. We started working naturally — all the videos, shows, tours, etc. She has such an amazing team around her, too, especially her creative director, Matthew Williams.

Where do you find inspiration?

I get inspired from people around me: my friends, collaborators, designers and photographers. I’m so lucky I get to meet and play with all these amazing people! I also have a huge toy collection that I often source through for ideas, but most importantly I find that traveling and visiting new places is very inspiring.

When it comes to your personal style, what do you like to wear?

Well, I’m half-Japanese, half-Italian, so naturally it’s a mix of East meets West, high fashion meets streetwear. I tend to get all my basics from Uniqlo, and I mix vintage clothing with a bit of Margiela. I like to keep it casual and comfortable.

Any advice for the young hopefuls?

Think twice! It’s not as glamorous as you think it is.

Thursday, January 7, 2010

my new obsession..

"Chase the Tear"
Portishead
"Chase the Tear"
[Amnesty International]
8

It was one of many spices flavoring the goodies available on their don't-call-it-a-comeback album Third, and it was the primary ingredient behind the music on Beak>, so the krautrock vibes on "Chase the Tear" shouldn't come as a surprise. The shockingly simple beat Geoff Barrow bangs out (as you can see in this fantastic video), coupled with the bubbling electronics seething behind it, finds Portishead effortlessly cruising down this particularly overcast stretch of the Autobahn. It's a fitting backdrop for Beth Gibbons' alluring croon and fractured lyrical impressionism ("Winter sigh/ Summer's gone/ Holding off tomorrow's sorrow")-- if her turn here makes you think of Fever Ray, you're not alone. Of course, on a track that acts like the sort of pop tune a bizarro Stereolab would've pressed to wax, what little guitar there is would sound like the tortured song of a melted music box. And, of course, befitting both a mysterious and mercurial outfit like Portishead and the sudden way in which this marvelous track sprung up on the web, "Chase the Tear" simply stops, leaving listeners waiting for whatever's next.

my new obsession..

Thursday, December 17, 2009

Happy Festive Season..

Happy festive season to all, please take note that the Neighbourgoods market only re-open on Saturday the 9th of January 2010.

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

Margiela without Martin, But How?

Martin Margiela to Leave Fashion House He Founded

By SUZY MENKES
Published: December 8, 2009

PARIS — The avant-garde Belgian designer Martin Margiela has quietly left the fashion house he built — and he will not be replaced at the company, which has been majority owned by the Italian group Diesel since 2002.

Taking an attitude that may become a 21st-century template for other brands, Giovanni Pungetti, chief executive of Maison Martin Margiela, said Tuesday that the fashion house would continue to operate with the creative staff that its reclusive founder had developed over 20 years but that there would be no new appointment of a creative director.

Ever since Karl Lagerfeld was tapped by Chanel in 1983, followed by John Galliano at Christian Dior in 1997, other storied houses have tried to fill the shoes of a deceased or departed creator. But as the design appointments become a revolving door at houses like Nina Ricci or Emanuel Ungaro, the replacement mechanism seems to have broken down.

“It would have been very simple to hire someone else, and we evaluated that option, but in the end, what is important is the taste of designer,” Mr. Pungetti said Tuesday in an interview in Paris.

Insiders had known for months that Mr. Margiela had left the company in all but name. The designer’s particular vision, which had focused on the authenticity of the vintage artisan fused with modern photo prints depicting wrinkles or handwork, was missing from recent shows.

But Mr. Pungetti insisted that fashion gossip, which held that Mr. Margiela had fallen out with Renzo Rosso, the colorful founder of Diesel, was far from the truth. Mr. Margiela decided after 20 years to walk away, Mr. Pungetti said, and the fact that the designer had made himself the Greta Garbo of the fashion world by never showing his face made it easier for his absence to be covered up.

During its seven-year period of control, Diesel, which has also taken majority stakes in other edgy labels like that of the Dutch design duo Viktor & Rolf, has increased revenue at Maison Martin Margiela to a predicted €70 million, or about $105 million, for the current financial year from €15 million in 2002.

The sporadic appearance at the studio by the founding designer over the last two years has not held back developments. Margiela-branded stores have been opened across the globe from Hong Kong to Moscow to Munich, with a pop-up store at the Art Basel Miami Beach art fair this week.

The first Margiela fragrance will be introduced early next year by L’Oréal, and a spa hotel opens in Bordeaux on Friday.

“Creating ambience is a very important development area,” Mr. Pungetti said.

If the Margiela brand remains vibrant and vital without one creative force — and only time will tell if the image is fading — the Margiela initiative will be studied by the many historic brands trying to stay relevant in the 21st century. Other chief executives have suggested that “difficult” designers can impede innovation, although that view would not be shared by most fashion experts, who consider creativity paramount.

The question is whether a dedicated team — at Margiela, 28 creative personnel — could operate without a name designer whose annual compensation to produce six to eight collections would be conservatively estimated at €5 million. If the answer is yes, then the departure of Mr. Margiela, whose personal image has so rarely been seen, may leave a lasting imprint on the business.